Alaska

Panic, Confusion in 911 Calls From Fort Lauderdale Airport Shooting

"There are alarms going off, somebody screamed he had a gun," a woman tells a 911 operator

Newly released 911 calls reveal panic and confusion during the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport shooting that killed five people and left six others wounded.

The 10 calls released by the Broward Sheriff's Office Tuesday are just a small sampling of the dozens of call received during the Jan. 6 shooting inside the baggage claim area of Terminal 2.

"There are alarms going off, somebody screamed he had a gun," a woman tells a 911 operator in one of the calls.

"Everybody's running, we don't know what's going on," another woman says in a second call. "We're hiding in the back of the kitchen in one of the restaurants. We're at Delta."

The man charged in the shooting, 26-year-old Esteban Santiago, pleaded not guilty Monday to 22 counts including causing death or bodily harm at an international airport, causing death during a crime of violence and using a firearm during a crime of violence.

Authorities say Santiago flew from Anchorage, Alaska, with a handgun in his checked luggage which he loaded in a bathroom before going on the shooting spree.

"We're locked in here, we don't know what's going on outside," another woman, who was working at the Delta Sky Club, tells a 911 operator in one of the calls. "We have a lot of passengers inside."

Another man calls 911 to let them know he's with a group of flight attendants and pilots in a briefing center.

"There's pandemonium going on with guns drawn outside," the man says.

One woman said she was part of a Delta crew that was in a lounge and had barricaded the door.

"We heard cops yelling and screaming, there's a ruckus outside in the airport," she said.

A man in another call says people are panicking and running through the terminal.

"I need you to try to hide or get somewhere safe," the dispatcher tells him.

"Yes, everybody’s hiding, everybody’s hiding. Everybody get down, get down! Alright, everybody’s following the TSA I guess," he replies.

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